UK Alpaca specialises in British alpaca yarns with full provenance. All the fleece we use comes from alpacas farmed in Britain. We want to buy as much fleece as possible as happily demand is greater than supply.

PRICING SCHEDULE

£12 a kilo for white baby grade skirted fleeces.

£10 a kilo for white baby grade un-skirted fleeces.

£8 a kilo for white fine grade skirted fleeces.

£6 a kilo for white fine grade un-skirted fleeces.

£8 a kilo for coloured baby grade skirted fleeces.

£6 a kilo for coloured baby grade un-skirted fleeces.

£5 a kilo for coloured fine grade skirted fleeces.

£3 a kilo for coloured fine grade un-skirted fleeces.

0.45p a kilo for all your skirtings, short neck, coarse fibre and shearing waste which should be bagged together according to colour.

All prices exclude VAT @20%

FLEECE REQUIREMENTS

We buy huacaya fleece in all colours apart from multicoloured animals. The fleece should be dry and free of moth infestation.

We grade into baby which as a guide is likely to be 22/21 micron and under and fine which as a guide is likely to be 22 to 26 micron. All grading is done by hand and by handle and it is the feel of the fleece that will determine its grade.

The fleece length needs to be a minimum of three inches. This is a requirement of the worsted spinning process.

Short and coarse fleeces, short neck, shearing waste and skirtings can be used and should be bagged together by colour.

FLEECE PREPARATION

We prefer the blanket fleece to be presented in clear plastic bags with the neck bagged separately and the bags labelled clearly with your name and address. As we grade in colour order it is much easier for us to group the bags in a particular colour if the bag is see-through.

The fleece does not need to have every scrap of vegetable matter removed. However we would be very grateful if large bits of straw or poo could end up in your waste bin or any other foreign objects. Notable finds in fleece include a set of keys, a mummified mouse, a bar of coal tar soap and a large brass picture hook.

It saves us a great deal of time if the fleece has already been skirted but we are happy to buy unskirted fleeces. Unskirted fleeces just attract a slightly lower price.

Skirting is best done at shearing on a table with a wire grid. The aim is to produce a consistent fleece with the obviously coarser or dirty parts of the fleece around the edge removed and any second cuts and excessive dust shaken out.

Neck fibre from younger animals is normally of high quality and should be bagged separately. If older animals have neck fibre that is three inches or longer and a suitable grade, that should be bagged separately rather than going into waste.

All ‘waste’ can be bagged together by colour.

SHEARING

Shearing is sometimes a lost opportunity to make money from your fleece. It is crucial to keep the shearing area clear of contamination. We see many fleeces with second cuts and waste in them from a different coloured fleece. This sort of contamination is an absolute ‘no no’ for fibre processing and is easily avoidable.

Please make sure you start with your white animals, then fawn, brown, grey, black and clean the shearing mat after each animal, making sure the shearing area is even cleaner when you move on to the next colour.

Second cuts should be avoided. Your shearer should take the blanket off first with single blows and not go back to tidy up the alpaca until the blanket is off. If you shake the fleece and find yourself in a snowstorm, speak to the shearer.

COLLECTION CENTRES

We are setting up a number of collection centres for 2017 or you can deliver your fleece to us at Vulscombe Farm in Devon or send it by post or courier.

Contact Name

Postcode

Area

Email

Telephone

Sandi Muriel / Alpacas of Cornwall

TR14 9PG

Camborne

carntremayne@hotmail.co.uk

07870 612559

Liz Giblin / The Alpaca Shop

CM5 0QL

Ongar

liz@butlersfarmalpacas.co.uk

01277 896565

UK Alpaca Ltd

EX16 8NB

Tiverton

info@ukalpaca.com

01884 243579

Jay & Hilary Holland / Pure Alpacas

GL19 4EU

Tirley, Gloucs

jay@purealpacas.co.uk

07789 257222

Linda Lyons / Clover Park Alpacas

NG16 5HJ

Nottingham

williamlyons@btinternet.com

07976 961376

Jenny MacHarg / Fowberry Alpacas

YO60 7PQ

York

info@fowberry-alpacas.com

01653 618100

Chris Deakin / Charnwood Forest Alpacas

LE12 9YB

Charley

chris@pukkapacas.com

075977 03492

Sue Myerscough / Alpacas of Wales

SA44 4PX

Llandysul

susan@alpacasofwales.com

07796 678637 or 01545 590361

Garry Naish / Oakview Alpacas

GL12 8PQ

Wotton-Under-Edge

oakviewalpacas@aol.com

07785 116211

Phil Allen / 2 Rivers Mill

BH21 7DH

Wimborne

phil@tworiversmill.com

07802 442228 or 01202 639294

Pauline Robson / Westyett Alpacas

ML11 8NT

Lanark

pauline@westyettalpacas.co.uk

01555 871464

Paul Whittey / Penrose Products

DN22 7PX

Retford

paul@penroseproducts.com

07572 418642

Mary-Jo Smith / Bozedown Alpacas

RG8 7QY

Reading

maryjo@bozedown-alpacas.co.uk

0118 9843827

END PRODUCT

UK Alpaca specialises in British alpaca yarns with full provenance. Our natural and dyed fully worsted yarns are processed in the traditional mills in the North of England. The aim is to maintain our reputation for top quality British alpaca yarns. We sell wholesale to knitwear designers, sock makers, weavers, hand dyers, retail shops and our yarns are also sold by the major online knitting websites. UK Alpaca is at all the major yarn shows promoting British alpaca.

UK Alpaca was set up by Chas Brooke and Rachel Hebditch. We support British alpaca farmers by buying several tons of fleece a year which is hand graded on farm for colour and fineness. The large quantities of fleece processed mean prices are competitive with South American imported yarns.

UK Alpaca’s range of yarns is available for wholesale and retail customers on cone and in balls for next day shipment. Alpaca breeders who sell their fleece to us can buy back yarns at wholesale prices with no minimum order.